photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-Home.png photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-About.png photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-Projects.png photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-Advertise.png photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-Contact.png

8.25.2014

Inspiration du jour ... #outside



Since I seem to be confessing lately ... I will make another big confession. 

I do not like to work in the yard.  At. All.


I don't like dirt and most everything I buy and plant seems to die.  As the hubs says ... plants come to our house to die.  I get all motivated and take hours to plant them so beautifully.  They look amazing for weeks and then life kicks in and I forget to water them and they die.  

I can't be the only one!  



So ... with the oldest graduating in May and our yard needing some work,  I am beginning to focus my energy on the outside of the house! The inside of the house is so much easier for me ... but I am trying to look at the outside with the same mentality.  The sections of the yard are the same as the rooms of the house, and I will take them one section at a time!

Last week I tackled the pots in the front yard ... the front steps, the garage and a new addition!


I have had these urns for a few years now and I love them!  I purchased them at Scott's Antique Market for $150 for the pair.  They are heavy and well worth the money!  These boxwood bushes are a few years old and I have done well with them. The first year I planted these small bushes in the urns they turned brown on the tips in the winter and I freaked.  My dirt friend Maggi reassured me that they were healthy and just "wintering".  They could have given me some notice!


 I added some moss to help me with the water retention.   Plus ... I just love the way it looks!!! 


I planted these boxwood topiaries on either side of the garage door in my other favorite pots.  I added some Creeping Jenny to the bottom of the topiary which I am doing my darnedest to water every morning.  That plant is hard to keep alive ... and I just love the mix of the two greens! I will add a picture of the garage with both pots this afternoon when the sun hits the back yard.  I forgot to shoot these pictures yesterday and the house faces east!  I just love these pots here.  The topiaires are my favorite project from last week!!


This is the new addition pot!  A little to the right of the front steps and filled with mint, the pot has a place for a candle in the middle so I can light it up for guests if I chose! I just love the stand and the pot full of mint.  It has already filled in from when I planted it just a few days ago.  Mint is one of the few things I do really well with growing.  And it will trail down some, which will be even more amazing!

My first "room" of the yard to tackle is a toss up between the mailbox area and the area surrounding the crepe myrtle.  Here are the plans ... 

Crepe Myrtle Room
 Plants English ivy in bed surrounding tree along walkway toward front door



Create a rock border around Crepe Myrtle to control the growth of the newly planted ivy
Remove existing nasty landscape edging and replace with bricks or large stones



Mailbox Room
New Mailbox ... our current one has a wood post (need I say more?)
Install a butterfly garden in the large triangle bed 





Remove existing nasty landscape edging and replace with bricks or large stones

Thoughts ... what would you tackle first?? 

And yes, I am doing this myself, with very little help from the yard guy! 

Well, except the mailbox!

I don't do cement!

xo,
MPM

7 comments:

  1. i'd do the border around the crepe myrtle first. keep it simple at first. i grew up having to do lots of yard work with my parents. pulled weeds all the time and hated every minute. now i love it. its therapeutic. weird i know. anyway...i scored some awesome butterfly attracting plants at our science museum where they have a huge butterfly exhibit. they sell plants at their gift shop. surely there's a place like that in atlanta? they give great tips and will know when and what to plant. cant wait to see what you do :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Been there done that. We ripped out all of our front beds in the spring of '13. 20 years, and things were just overgrown. And you would think since my sweet baby bro is a landscaper that I wouldn't have had to do a think. WRONG! Big sis, the non-paying customer is always last on his list. LOL I am so glad to have it behind us. The only area now we have to work on is our side yard/hill where we had 15 lelands removed this past year. This one requires waiting on little brother...I don't do trees (at least not that size). I always concentrate on the beds closest to the front door first as that is usually where ones eye tends to go first when looking at a home. However, the mailbox area will be a quick fix.

    ReplyDelete
  3. You're hilarious! I don't mind getting dirty and doing yard work, not like picking up leaves, but I do cut grass and plant. Can't wait to see what you do!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I LOVE yardwork! I would rather work outside than in any day! I keep my yard well groomed because, not only do I like nice yards, but I like everyone else to admire it. My suggestion is do around the mailbox first. Its right by the road so its highly visible. Plant some gorgeous flowers and Liriope. So easy!

    ReplyDelete
  5. We have a butterfly bush in our front yard and it is always swarming with butterflies. I only wish it was a tidier plant. Be sure to keep us posted with your progress.

    ReplyDelete
  6. The story of my life.....each spring I tell Hubby that it will be different this year....and it is....for a bit.....then, just as you say, life gets busy (and if I'm being honest, the weather gets hot). Yours will be stunning though! Can't wait to see the progress.

    ReplyDelete
  7. took me 5 yrs to finally get flowers to grow in our mailbox area. Bag of dirt/bag of manure mix was what did the trick for me. The GA clay does not help in this matter at all. We have a butterfly garden that I love, don't put too many plants, they need their space. Can't wait to see!!!

    ReplyDelete

 

design + development by kelly christine studio